Pump up the Muse

Sometimes I find writing is hard to start. The first several minutes are all rusty hinges, steep inclines, and boggy soil. Sometimes I slog for hours instead of minutes hoping to see the swamp end. Eventually, I do loosen up and begin to write. However, I have always wanted to reach this fertile land easier and faster, so I have come up with several techniques to help me.

To talk about finding my way to through this swamp, I first need to speak to how I write. There are three main phases to writing for me. The spiritual, where I find the idea or the Muse, comes first. It gives me the seed that I plant and grow. The second phase is the Creative or writing stage. It is where the story sprouts and becomes mature. During this phase it all gets written down. Another important fact is that the Muse phase must always proceed each session of the Creative phase. Without the energy provided by my spiritual focus, it can be quite difficult to break through the soil and reach for truth. Finally comes the Pruning or editing phase. This is mostly about blood and sweat and, thus, presents motivational problems.

Taking all this into account, my first answer to writing problems is usually light exercise. For me light exercise means walking or, when I’m healthier, jogging. There have been several published psychological studies proving the correlation between moderate to light exercise and enhanced creativity. These studies showed not only the immediate benefits to the exercising individual, but creativity enhancing effects that last more than two hours post exercise. Furthermore, there is near limitless anecdotal evidence for enhanced post-exercise creativity in the writings of runners. I say all this to support my contention that when I am bogged down, the single most powerful tool to move forward in either the Creative or Muse stages of writing is nothing more significant than a long brisk walk.

The Muse stage benefits most from physical exercise. Almost every story I have written has gained its soul during a long walk. I think part of this may be because of the distractions of the modern age. It is harder for full ideas to shape themselves among the hustle and bustle of the noisy home or office.

A second important tool to move past being bogged down is isolation. That may seem obvious. In our busy lives today, however, it may be far easier to consider isolation than to do it. Much of my isolation is achieved as a tradeoff for sleep. Free time away from the office is often filled with family activities and chores. I am sure I am not alone in this. None-the-less, isolation is a great tool to help all stages of writing. It is especially effective during the Pruning phase. I often try to fool myself into thinking that I can edit in front of the T.V. or while riding in the car. Realistically, editing is hard enough to achieve without constant distractions.

The third major tool I sometimes use is introspection. Why is introspection important? My writing, even when I try to suppress it, is scarred by what I believe in my heart. The twisted thorns of truth that my subconscious mind has truly accepted lay beneath the surface of all my writing. To be sure J.R.R. Tolkein’s stories, despite his attempt to create a pure fantasy, blaze with Christian symbolism. Similarly, all good writing is an overflow of the heart.

Introspection comes into play during the Creative phase and even more so during the Pruning phase. Why is it so important? I find that most of us don’t even know what we really believe. Why do I spend money I don’t have, work too much, eat too much, love too little, and basically do things that my mind tells me are stupid? To be frank, this is because very rarely are my actions driven by what I think. My decisions are driven by what I think. My actions, which often contradict my decisions, are driven by my heart. As I said earlier, writing is an overflow of the heart. Right or wrong, my goal must be first and foremost to sharpen the thorns that are hidden in my writing. This will transform my writing from good to magnificent.

My fourth and final tool I use is music. This may not work for everyone but it works for me. I find it tremendously valuable in all stages of writing. Basically Music can be used to leverage each of the above techniques. Music provides energy and helps me move towards the spiritual. It can be used to isolate me from my surroundings. As what moves me is often much more driven by my heart than my mind, music can also help my introspection. A whole essay could be devoted just to the power of music to enhance writing creativity, but that is for another time. Suffice it to say that when I’m having a down writing day, I often pump of the music and thus, pump up my muse. With my muse on fire, the writing comes.

Chris.